大型海底、海岸和沙漠沙丘的形态和迁移特征

海底、海岸和沙漠沙丘的迁移与其波高、波长等形态参数有关。对一些代表性大型沙丘的分析表明,海底、海岸和沙漠沙丘的形态特征存在着较大的差异,在相同波长条件下,海底沙丘波高最小,海岸沙丘波高次之,沙漠沙丘波高最大。其原因主要是流体厚度的差异,其次是物质供给条件的不同:浅海地区的水深限制了沙丘向上生长,而陆地气流厚度较大,给沙丘的向上生长提供了较大的空间;沙漠环境的沉积物供给远大于海岸环境,因而导致沙丘高度的差异。沙丘形态参数经常偏离统计的波长 波高曲线,数值实验结果显示,这与推移质输运率有关。推移质输运率的沿程变化可以使形态参数系统性地偏离波长 波高曲线;推移质输运率的沿程突变可使沙丘迁移受阻,造成沉积物的垂向堆积,形成超高的沙丘。由于大型沙丘的迁移特征受控于推移质输运率和沙丘高度,因此可以通过波高设计来计算迁移距离 历时曲线,进而控制沙丘迁移动态。文中给出了一个获取迁移距离 历时曲线的算例。设计波高可通过人工篱笆、隔挡墙、沟渠、表面护层等措施而实现。     

New evidence from the western Canadian Arctic Archipelago for the resubmergence of Bering Strait

Widespread molluscan samples were collected from raised marine sediments to date the last retreat of the NW Laurentide Ice Sheet from the western Canadian Arctic Archipelago. At the head of Mercy Bay, northern Banks Island, deglacial mud at the modern coast contains Hiatella arctica and Portlandia arctica bivalves, as well as Cyrtodaria kurriana, previously unreported for this area. Multiple H. arctica and C. kurriana valves from this site yield a mean age of 11.5 ¹⁴C ka BP (with 740 yr marine reservoir correction). The occurrence of C. kurriana, a low Arctic taxon, raises questions concerning its origin, because evidence is currently lacking for a molluscan refugium in the Arctic Ocean during the last glacial maximum. Elsewhere, the oldest late glacial age available on C. kurriana comes from the Laptev Sea where it is < 10.3 ¹⁴C ka BP and attributed to a North Atlantic source. This is 2000 cal yr younger than the Mercy Bay samples reported here, making the Laptev Sea, ~ 3000 km to the west, an unlikely source. An alternate route from the North Atlantic into the Canadian Arctic Archipelago was precluded by coalescent Laurentide, Innuitian and Greenland ice east of Banks Island until ~ 10 ¹⁴C ka BP. We conclude that the presence of C. kurriana on northern Banks Island records migration from the North Pacific. This requires the resubmergence of Bering Strait by 11.5 ¹⁴C ka BP, extending previous age determinations on the reconnection of the Pacific and Arctic oceans by up to 1000 yr. This renewed ingress of Pacific water likely played an important role in re-establishing Arctic Ocean surface currents, including the evacuation of thick multi-year sea ice into the North Atlantic prior to the Younger Dryas geochron.     

Weathered bedrock as a source of sand and gravel aggregate in north-eastern New South Wales, Australia

 The most commonly recognized sources of sand and gravel aggregate are the deposits of coastal, fluvial and glacial sedimentary processes. It is not commonly recognized that weathered bedrock is also an important source of sand and gravel aggregate. In the case of weathered sedimentary bedrock the product may be indistinguishable from modern sedimentary materials and deposits may be misidentified. Batson's quarry is a major sand and gravel aggregate resource for the rapidly developing region of north-eastern New South Wales. The deposit has previously been assumed to be a young sedimentary deposit, but detailed field examination and comparison with surrounding rock types indicates that it has formed from weathered Mesozoic sandstone bedrock. The extraction of weathered bedrock aggregate deposits has distinctive environmental implications because, unlike sedimentary aggregates, they are not restricted by the geometry of sedimentary environments and do not necessarily interfere with surface drainage systems. This study shows that the recognition of the geological origin of a resource is essential in order to determine its potential geographical extent, and thereby maximize its utilization and minimize land use conflict. Received: 3 January 1996 / Accepted: 1 November 1996     

Tectonically deformed sand volcanoes in a Precambrian greywacke,northern territory of Australia

Structures previously described as umbrella‐shaped probable fossils are shown to be tectonically deformed cylindrical to conical sand volcanoes. They occur in the upper parts of greywacke beds in the middle Precambrian Pine Creek Geosyncline. The anisotropy caused by the occurrence of the volcanoes resulted in the localization of stresses during the deformation of the geosynclinal sequence, causing the formation of radial and concentric fractures in each of the volcanoes.     

Eustatic and tectonic controls on Quaternary Ras Leona marine terraces (Strait of Gibraltar, northern Morocco)

Well-preserved Quaternary staircased marine terraces appear on Ras Leona limestone relief. This is a peculiar sector of the Betic-Rif Cordillera, lying in the four-way junction between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, and Europe and Africa. The age and altitude correlation of the Ras Leona terraces with travertine-covered lateral equivalent terraces fashioned in the neighbouring Beni Younech area, and comparison with those along the Moroccan Atlantic coasts, would suggest that the Ras Leona terraces were mainly formed by eustatic factors. The importance of the eustasy is supported by further comparisons with Spanish and Moroccan Mediterranean terraces and with different marine terraces developed on passive-margin coasts around the world. A tectonic event occurred mainly during the period between the formation of the Maarifian and the Ouljian terraces (i.e., between 370 and 150 ka). The moderate Quaternary tectonic uplift deduced from the marine terraces and its comparison with uplifted marine terraces developed in active subduction setting disagrees with the model of an active eastwards subduction below the Gibraltar tectonic arc.     

Provenance of recycled palynomorph assemblages recovered from surficial glaciomarine sediments in Bransfield Strait, offshore Antarctic Peninsula

Glaciomarine surficial sediments in cores taken from Bransfield Strait, adjacent to the Antarctic Peninsula, have yielded abundant recycled and contemporaneous (Pleistocene–Holocene) palynomorphs. The former are derived principally from Late Cretaceous–Palaeogene sediments and provide information on glaciomarine depositional conditions and sediment source areas. The composition of the assemblages suggests that they reflect vegetation that was endemic to the Weddellian Biogeographic Province, which includes what is now Seymour Island, James Ross Island and other parts of the Antarctic Peninsula region. The sediments concerned are considered to have accumulated as a result of ice-rafting and discharge of subglacial meltwater.     

Source-area controls on the composition of beach and fluvial sands on the southern side of the Gibraltar Strait and Western Alboran Sea (Flysch Basin, Internal and External, Domains, Northern Rif Chain)

The southern side of Gibraltar and the Western Alboran Sea of the northern Rif coasts and rivers provide a natural field laboratory for sampling modern sand at different scales: small catchment basins (first order) and rivers draining mountain belts (second order). The Rifian chain represents a deformed and uplifted thrust-belt and related forelands composed of Palaeozoic nappes, metamorphic and plutonic basement, and their sedimentary Mesozoic and Cenozoic siliciclastic and carbonate cover, respectively. The present physiography of the Rif Chain is shaped by a rugged mountainous relief drained by different scale catchment basins that supply the nearby coastal and marine deep-sea environments. The analysis of the composition of modern fluvial and beach sands is useful for the interpretation of transported sediments by surface processes from the continent toward coasts and later to deep-water environments.Modern beach and fluvial sands of the southern side of Gibraltar and the Western Alboran Sea display three distinct petrologic littoral provinces, from the east to the west and from the north to the south, respectively, designated as: (i) the Tangier–Bel Younech Littoral Province with 90% of sand derived from erosion of Flysch Nappes (Flysch Basin Domain); (ii) the Bel Younech–Sebta Littoral Province with 64% of sand fed mainly by the metamorphic Units of Upper Sebtides and (iii) the Sebta–Ras Mazari Littoral Province with 74% of sand supplied from the epimetamorphic Palaeozoic Ghomaride Nappes and Alpine cover rather than Mesozoic and Cenozoic sedimentary successions of the “Dorsale Calcaire” Units. Comparison of detrital modes of fluvial and coastal marine environments highlights their dispersal pathways and drainage patterns of actualistic sand petrofacies.     

The role of the Iceland Ice Sheet in the North Atlantic during the late Quaternary: a review and evidence from Denmark Strait

Investigations indicate that the Iceland Ice Sheet was reduced in size during MIS 3 but readvanced to the shelf break at the LGM. Retreat occurred very rapidly around 15 k–16 k cal. yr BP. By contrast, the margin of the ice sheet on the East Greenland shelf, north of the Denmark Strait, was at or close to the shelf break during MIS 3 and 2 and retreat starting ～17 k cal. yr BP. Quantitative X‐ray diffraction analysis of the <2 mm sediment fraction was undertaken on 161 samples from Iceland and East Greenland diamictons, and from cores on the slopes and margins of the Denmark Strait. Weight% mineralogical data are used in a principal component analysis to differentiate sediments derived from the two margins. The first two PC axes explain 52% of the variance. These associations are used to characterise sediments as being affiliated with (a) Iceland, (b) East Greenland or (c) mixed. The contribution from Iceland becomes prominent during MIS 2. The extensive outcrop of early Tertiary basalts on East Greenland between 68° and 71° N is an alternative source for basaltic clasts and North Atlantic sediments with εNd(0) values close to ±0. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of vegetation on aeolian sand transport rate from a backshore to a foredune at Hasaki, Japan

The influence of vegetation on aeolian sediment transport rate in the region from a backshore to a foredune was investigated at the Hasaki Coast in Japan, where an onshore wind was predominant and the creeping beach grasses Carex kobomugi and Calystegia soldanella were major species. The comparison of cross-shore distributions of the cross-shore component of aeolian sand transport rate with and without vegetation, which were estimated on the basis of the beach profile changes and a mass conservation equation, showed that the creeping grasses influenced the aeolian sand transport rate. The landward aeolian sand transport rate rapidly decreased landward from the seaward limit of vegetation when the grasses grew. The aeolian sand transport rate reduced by 95% with a vegetation cover of 28%. On the other hand, when the grasses were absent, the landward aeolian sand transport rate did not decrease near the seaward vegetation limit, but near the foot of the foredune.     

Measurement of natural radioactivity in sand samples collected from the Baoji Weihe Sands Park, China

The activity concentrations and the gamma-absorbed dose rates of the primordial naturally occurring radionuclides ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K were determined for sand samples collected from the Baoji Weihe Sands Park, China, using γ-ray spectrometry. The natural radioactivity concentration of sand ranges from 10.2 to 38.3 Bq kg⁻¹ for ²²⁶Ra, 27.0 to 48.8 Bq kg⁻¹ for ²³²Th and 635.8 to 1,126.7 Bq kg⁻¹ for ⁴⁰K with mean values of 22.1, 39.0 and 859.1 Bq kg⁻¹, respectively. The concentrations of these radionuclides are compared with the typical world values and the average activity of Chinese soil. The measured activity concentration of ²²⁶Ra and ²³²Th in sand is lower than the world average while that of ⁴⁰K is higher. . To evaluate the radiological hazard of the natural radioactivity, the radium equivalent activity, the external hazard index, the absorbed dose rate, and the effective dose rate have been calculated and compared with internationally approved values. The radium equivalent activity values of all sand samples are lower than the limit of 370 Bq kg⁻¹. The values of the external hazard index are less than unity. The mean outdoor air absorbed dose rate is 69.6 nGy h⁻¹ and the corresponding outdoor effective dose rate is 0.085 mSv y⁻¹.     

Origin of yellow sand from Tamala Limestone on the Swan Coastal Plain,Western Australia

There has been considerable debate concerning the origin of the Spearwood Dunes on the Swan Coastal Plain in Western Australia. In general, it is believed that the Spearwood Dunes are a complex of calcareous coastal dunes deposited during the Quaternary and now consist of an aeolianite core (the Tamala Limestone) plus tracts of surficial residual sand from dissolution thereof. However, in the mid‐seventies a counter view was presented suggesting that the sand was not residual but was transported by aeolian processes from inland sources. At 11 sites on the Swan Coastal Plain a combination of grainsize analysis and heavy‐mineral analysis was used to demonstrate that the sand of the Spearwood Dunes has evolved as a result of in situ weathering of the underlying Tamala Limestone. This supports previous work on the Swan Coastal Plain and other sandplains in Western Australia, suggesting that there has been very little long‐range aeolian transport of sands during the Late Pleistocene.     

Tectonothermal history of the western Lachlan Fold Belt, Australia: insights from white mica studies

Detailed b lattice parameter and illite crystallinity (IC) studies of K-white micas in slates from the Stawell and Ballarat-Bendigo Zones (SZ, BBZ) in the western Lachlan Fold Belt of Victoria, Australia, reveal a metamorphic pattern characterized by regional metamorphism associated with crustal thickening and younger contact metamorphism accompanied by deformation. The IC data indicate that rocks regionally metamorphosed prior to the intrusion of the Early and Late Devonian granitoids, vary in grade from epizonal (greenschist facies) to diagenetic (zeolite facies) and that most are of epizonal to anchizonal (prehnite–pumpellyite facies) grade. In the BBZ, a decrease in grade from west to east occurs. Across fault zones, IC values show little change, indicating that limited vertical displacement has occurred. This is in accord with the thin skinned deformation model proposed for the western Lachlan Fold Belt. The b lattice parameters (x=9.022 Å; n=137; σ_n=0.009) indicate baric conditions intermediate between those of New Hampshire (P=Al₂SiO₅ triple point) and Otago (intermediate P ). Thus, a moderately low geothermal gradient existed 450–430 Ma ago, when these rocks were deformed. K_D Fe/Mg (actinolite)/Fe/Mg (chlorite) values (0.52–0.70) obtained from coexisting actinolite and chlorite in metabasites from fault zones support the moderately high-P (c. 4 kbar) metamorphism suggested by the b cell parameter values. The metamorphic conditions indicated by these data are contrary to the low-P/high-T conditions proposed by previous authors, who inferred an intimate association between deformation, granitoid intrusion and gold mineralization. The b lattice parameter of white micas in slates adjacent to Early Devonian (c. 400 Ma) granitoids with schist bearing aureoles in the north-eastern part of the BBZ (x=9.002 Å; n=27; σ_n=0.007), indicate pressures in the order of c. 2.5 kbar which are in accord with those obtained from andalusite–cordierite and zoisite–garnet bearing assemblages observed in the higher grade metapelitic and calcareous rocks. This contrasts with the higher pressure (c. 4 kbar) existing during regional metamorphism and implies that c. 6.5–8 km of metasedimentary rocks in the BBZ were removed before the emplacement of the Early Devonian granitoids. Metamorphic assemblages in hornfelses associated with Late Devonian granitoids indicate a further 5–6 km of metasediment were removed in the next 40 Ma prior to their emplacement. This study shows the value of white mica studies in elucidating the tectonothermal history of a low-grade metamorphic terrane dominated by metapelitic rocks.     

Uranium/thorium dating of ferricretes from mid- to late pleistocene glacial sediments,western Tasmania,Australia

The uranium/thorium (U/Th) dating method was applied to pedogenic/diagenic ferricretes developed within glacial drifts from the northern West Coast Ranges of Tasmania. The dates derived from the method are, by definition, minima for the sediments, with the ferricretes being secondary mineral deposits which appear in the form of bands, horizons or nodules comprised of indurated masses of iron oxy(hydr)oxides developed post-depositionally within the host sediment or soil. The absence of such deposits in well-identified drift sediments of the last glaciation suggests the development of ferricrete horizons in glacial drifts occurred during earlier interstadials and interglacials. This has been confirmed by the uranium/thorium dating of ferricrete bands within glacigenic sediments obtained from three drill cores from the Boco Valley. The ages derived were found to be consistent with estimates for the timing of glaciation derived from palaeomagnetic analyses, radiocarbon dating and relative dating techniques. The results show that the uranium/thorium method can be used to successfully date ferricretes obtained from within glacial sediments of ages <350000 yr and provides valuable information regarding the minimum age of the host sediment. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stratigraphic resolution of a multiphase intracratonic basin system: The McArthur Basin,northern Australia

The Broadmere Structure is a concealed complex inversion structure that developed in a well preserved part of the Batten Trough in the southern McArthur Basin of northern Australia. The structure formed in response to a number of major tectonic events over a period of at least 600 million years. Evaluation of more than 300 km of seismic data gathered across the structure has provided significant insight into the evolution of the basin architecture which, in turn, has provided a framework for understanding the spatial and temporal distribution of mineralisation. The Palaeoproterozoic McArthur Basin, a polyphase basin with a long and complex evolutionary history, was initiated some time after 1.8 Ga as a sag basin following mantle activity associated with supercontinent assembly. This shallow sag then began to accumulate a relatively mature clastic sedimentary succession with interspersed basic volcanics. Subsequent extension of the weakened crust, beginning at approximately 1730 Ma, led to the development of a series of normal faults and half grabens within zones (e.g. Batten Trough) defined laterally by major strike slip fault complexes. The half grabens were filled initially by volcaniclastic sediments with associated bimodal volcanics that were later followed by mixed carbonate and clastic sediments exceeding 8 km in thickness. A major change in basinal and regional dynamics between 1575 and 1500 Ma (Isan Orogeny) led to the inversion of the thickened succession overlying the half grabens and extensive erosion of earlier depositional units, followed by deposition of a further 3 km of shallow marine clastic sediments. The analysis of the Broadmere Structure has provided a simple framework in which to evaluate prospectivity. The primary northwest striking half grabens formed localised anoxic, sediment starved depocentres in which organic rich sediments that potentially host mineralisation accumulated. The distribution of subsequent ore bodies is a function of the timing of fluid movement and the nature of fluid pathways, as determined by the evolving basin architecture. Fluids moved laterally through the permeable channels into the Batten Trough in two stages. Spatial data show that Pb and Zn occurrences lie close to the bounding faults, while Cu occurrences are distributed across the width of the Batten Trough, supporting a more or less syngenetic origin for the former and a much later, post inversion, epigenetic origin, for the latter. Mineralisation thus occurred in association with inversion structures formed above the primary half grabens that were generally concealed by later sedimentation. Because the half grabens occur at regularly spaced intervals along the Batten Trough there may well be more mineral occurrences similar to the McArthur River deposit. Clearly, these conclusions must be integrated into any exploration strategy.     

Mobilisation of traffic-derived trace metals from road corridors into coastal stream and estuarine sediments,Cairns, northern Australia

This investigation revealed the presence of traffic-derived metals within road, stream and estuarine sediments collected from a coastal catchment, northern Australia. Studied road sediments displayed variable total metal concentrations (median Cd, Cu, Pb, Pd, Pt, Ni and Zn values: 0.19, 42.6, 67.5, 0.064, 0.104, 36.7 and 698 mg/kg, respectively). The distinctly elevated Zn values are due to abundant tyre rubber shreds (as verified by SEM-EDS and correlation analysis). By comparison to the road sediments, background stream sediments taken upstream from roads have relatively low median Pb, Pd, Pt and Zn concentrations (7.3 mg/kg Pb, 0.01 mg/kg Pd, 0.012 mg/kg Pt, 62 mg/kg Zn). Stream and estuarine sediment samples collected below roads have median values of 21.8 mg/kg Pb, 0.014 mg/kg Pd, 0.021 mg/kg Pt and 71 mg/kg Zn, and exhibit ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb and ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁶Pb ratios that appear on a mixing line between the isotopically distinct background stream sediments and the road sediments. Thus, mobilisation of dusts and sediments from road surfaces has resulted in relatively elevated Pb, Pd, Pt and Zn concentrations and non-radiogenic Pb isotope ratios in local coastal stream and estuarine sediments. The investigation demonstrates that traffic-derived metals enter coastal stream and estuary sediments at the fringe of the Great Barrier Reef lagoon.     

Genetic classification of magmatic rocks from the Alvand plutonic complex,Hamedan, western Iran,based on zircon crystal morphology

The Alvand plutonic complex consists of gabbroic and felsic rocks, the latter can be divided into (1) porphyritic, fine-grained and mylonitic granites and (2) leucocratic granitoids. We investigated the external zircon morphology and their internal structures from all major granitoids of the pluton employing the classic Pupin method supplemented by electron microscope analyses. Zircons of gabbroic rocks are free of visible cores or inclusions and are commonly characterized by {1 0 1} pyramids and {1 0 0} prisms and show mainly zircon types P₅ and D typical for mantel-derived rocks. The zircon population from the porphyritic granite is characterized by the predominance of the pyramidal {2 1 1} and prism {1 1 0} forms and mainly composed of the subtypes S₁, S₂, S₆ and S₇ typical for peraluminous granites of crustal origin. Melt inclusions, recrystallization patches and low-CL intensity rims are typical features in these grains. Zircons from the fine-grained granites are characterized by the predominance of the pyramidal {2 1 1} and the prism face {1 1 0} and by a preponderance of the subtypes S₃, S₄, S₇ and especially S₁₂ and occasionally S₂, L₂, L₃ and L₄, typical for aluminous monzogranites and granodiorites of crustal origin. Some grains have pre-magmatic inherited domains with overgrow rims. The mylonitized granites contain zircons with {1 0 1} pyramids and {1 1 0} prisms and include subtypes G₁, P₁, P₂, S₅ whereas P₃, S₄, L₅ are rarely present, typical for I-type granites. Metamictization, radial cracks and partial overgrowths are prevalent in these zircons. Zircons from the leucocratic granitoids have well-developed magmatic oscillatory zonation and pre-magmatic zircon cores. They are characterized by {1 0 1} pyramids and {1 1 0} prisms and are mainly composed of subtypes L₅, S₅, S₁₀ and rarely P₁, P₂, S₂, S₃, S₄, S₇, G₁ typical for hybrid calc-alkaline granites.     

The role of decarbonization and structure in the Callie gold deposit, Tanami Region of northern Australia

The Callie deposit is the largest (6.0 Moz Au) of several gold deposits in the Dead Bullock Soak goldfield of the Northern Territory’s Tanami Region, 550 km northwest of Alice Springs. The Callie ore lies within corridors, up to 180 m wide, of sheeted en echelon quartz veins where they intersect the 500-m-wide hinge of an ESE-plunging F₁ anticlinorium. The host rocks are the Blake beds, of the Paleoproterozoic Dead Bullock Formation, which consist of a > 350-m-thick sequence of lower greenschist facies graphitic turbidites and mudstones overlying in excess of 100 m of thickly bedded siltstones and fine sandstones. The rocks are Fe-rich and dominated by assemblages of chlorite and biotite, both of which are of hydrothermal and metamorphic origin. A fundamental characteristic of the hydrothermal alteration is the removal of graphite, a process which is associated with bleaching and the development of bedding-parallel bands of coarse biotite augen. Gold is found only in quartz veins and only where they cut decarbonized chloritic rock with abundant biotite augen and no sulfide minerals. Auriferous quartz veins differ from barren quartz veins by the presence of ilmenite, apatite, xenotime, and gold and the absence of sulfide minerals. The assemblage of gold–ilmenite–apatite–xenotime indicates a linked genesis and mobility of Ti, P, and Y in the mineralizing fluids. Geochemical analysis of samples throughout the deposit shows that gold only occurs in sedimentary rocks with high FeO/(FeO+Fe₂O₃) and low C/(C+CO₂) ratios (> 0.8 and < 0.2, respectively). This association can be explained by reactions that convert C from reduced graphitic host rocks into CO₂ and reduce ferric iron in the host rocks to ferrous iron in biotite and chlorite. These reactions would increase the CO₂ content of the fluid, facilitating the transport of Ti, P, and Y from the host rocks into the veins. Both CO₂ and CH₄ produced by reaction of H₂O with graphite, effervesced under the lower confining pressures in the veins. This would have partitioned H₂S into the vapor phase, destabilizing Au–bisulfide complexes; the loss of CO₂ and H₂S from the aqueous phase caused precipitation of gold, ilmenite, apatite, and xenotime. It is proposed that this process was the main control on gold precipitation. Oxidization of iron in the very reduced wall rocks, resulting in reduction of the fluid, provided a second mechanism of gold precipitation in previously decarbonized rocks, contributing to the high grades in some samples. Although sulfide minerals, especially arsenopyrite, did form during the hydrothermal event, host rock sulfidation reactions did not play a role in gold precipitation because gold is absent near rocks or veins containing sulfide minerals. Sulfide minerals likely formed by different mechanisms from those associated with gold deposition. Both the fold architecture and subsequent spatially coincident sinistral semibrittle shearing ensured that the ore fluids were strongly focused into the hinges of the anticlines. Within the anticlines, a reactive cap of fine-grained, graphitic, reduced Fe-rich turbidites above more permeable siltstones and fine sandstones impeded fluid flow ensuring efficient removal of graphite, and the associated effervescence of CO₂ from the fluid caused the precipitation of gold. Exploration for similar deposits should focus on the intersection of east–west shear zones with folds and Fe-rich graphitic host rocks.     

Reconstructing the migration patterns of late Pleistocene mammals from northern Florida, USA

We used analyses of the strontium isotope (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) ratios of tooth enamel to reconstruct the migration patterns of fossil mammals collected along the Aucilla River in northern Florida. Specimens date to the late-glacial period and before the last glacial maximum (pre-LGM). Deer and tapir displayed low ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios that were similar to the ratios of Florida environments, which suggest that these taxa did not migrate long distance outside of the Florida region. Mastodons, mammoths, and equids all displayed a wide range of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios. Some individuals in each taxon displayed low ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios that suggest they ranged locally, while other animals had high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios that suggest they migrated long distances (> 150 km) outside of the Florida region. Mastodons were the only taxa from this region that provided enough well-dated specimens to compare changes in migration patterns over time. Pre-LGM mastodons displayed significantly lower ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios than late-glacial mastodons, which suggests that late-glacial mastodons from Florida migrated longer distances than their earlier counterparts. This change in movement patterns reflects temporal changes in regional vegetation patterns.     

The morphodynamics of fluvial sand dunes in the River Rhine, near Mainz, Germany. I. Sedimentology and morphology

The dynamics of large isolated sand dunes moving across a gravel lag layer were studied in a supply‐limited reach of the River Rhine, Germany. Bed sediments, dune geometry, bedform migration rates and the internal structure of dunes are considered in this paper. Hydrodynamic and sediment transport data are considered in a companion paper. The pebbles and cobbles (D₅₀ of 10 mm) of the flat lag layer are rarely entrained. Dunes consist of well‐sorted medium to coarse sand (D₅₀ of 0·9 mm). Small pebbles move over the dunes by ‘overpassing’, but there is a degree of size and shape selectivity. Populations of ripples in sand (D₅₀ < 0·6 mm), and small and large dunes are separated by distinct breaks in the bedform length data in the regions of 0·7–1 m and 5–10 m. Ripples and small dunes may have sinuous crestlines but primarily exhibit two‐dimensional planforms. In contrast, large dunes are primarily three‐dimensional barchanoid forms. Ripples on the backs of small dunes rarely develop to maximum steepness. Small dunes may achieve an equilibrium geometry, either on the gravel bed or as secondary dunes within the boundary layer on the stoss side of large dunes. Secondary dunes frequently develop a humpback profile as they migrate across the upper stoss slope of large dunes, diminishing in height but increasing in length as they traverse the crestal region. However, secondary dunes more than 5 m in length are rare. The dearth of equilibrium ripples and long secondary dunes is probably related to the limited excursion length available for bedform development on the parent bedforms. Large dunes with lengths between 20 m and 100 m do not approach an equilibrium geometry. A depth limitation rather than a sediment supply limitation is the primary control on dune height; dunes rarely exceed 1 m high in water depths of ≈4 m. Dune celerity increases as a function of the mean flow velocity squared, but this general relationship obscures more subtle morphodynamics. During rising river stage, dunes tend to grow in height owing to crestal accumulation, which slows downstream progression and steepens the dune form. During steady or falling stage, an extended crestal platform develops in association with a rapid downstream migration of the lee side and a reduction in dune height. These diminishing dunes actually increase in unit volume by a process of increased leeside accumulation fed by secondary dunes moving past a stalled stoss toe. A six‐stage model of dune growth and diminution is proposed to explain variations in observed morphology. The model demonstrates how the development of an internal boundary layer and the interaction of the water surface with the crests of these bedload‐dominated dunes can result in dunes characterized by gentle lee sides with weak flow separation. This finding is significant, as other studies of dunes in large rivers have attributed this morphological response to a predominance of suspended load transport.     

大兴安岭北段呼中西部塔木兰沟组火山岩年代学、岩石地球化学特征及其构造意义

呼中火山岩位于大兴安岭北段,塔木兰沟组是其喷发较早的一期中基性火山岩。锆石U-Pb年代学研究表明,呼中火山岩形成于(154±1)Ma,属晚侏罗世。呼中火山岩SiO_2为49.80%~55.96%、Al_2O_3为16.70%~18.93%、Na_2O+K_2O为6.35%~9.11%,属中基性高铝碱性岩石。微量元素特征显示,呼中火山岩富集大离子亲石元素Ba,亏损高场强元素Nb、Ta,Nb/Ta=12.44~15.58。呼中火山岩元素含量及其比值的变化显示了本区塔木兰沟组玄武岩浆在分离结晶作用过程中受到了壳源物质的影响,其形成环境为板块边缘岛弧造山带环境,由古亚洲洋和(或)蒙古—鄂霍茨克洋板块俯冲形成。